CA Housing Affordability Index falls.

ACCORDING TO A REPORT BY THE CALIFORNIA Association of Realtors[R] (C.A.R.), Los Angeles, 21 percent of households in California were able to afford a medianpriced home in March, a 7 percentagepoint decrease compared with the same period a year ago, when the Housing Affordability Index (HAI) was at 28 percent. The March HAI declined three points compared with February, when it stood at 24 points.

The minimum household income needed to purchase a median-priced home at $428,280 in California in March was $97,340, based on a typical 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage at 5.48 percent and assuming a 20 percent down payment. The minimum household income needed to purchase a median-priced home was up from $82,080 in March 2003, when the median price of a home was $351,130 and the prevailing interest rate was 5.8 percent. The minimum household income needed to purchase a median-priced home (at $174,100) in the United States in March 2004 was $39,570.

California's High Desert region was the most affordable in the state at 53 percent, followed by the Sacramento region at 34 percent. The Monterey, Northern Wine Country, Orange County and Santa Barbara County regions were the least affordable in the state at 14 percent.